Today is Good Friday and Easter Sunday is two days away.  So I thought this would be an ideal time to start a thread on Howell Vincent's old book, "Lighted Passage" (1943).  Roger was kind enough to bring this book to my attention and even mailed me a copy.  For this I am most grateful.  As I recall, one of Roger's colleagues at work is related to Howell and brought the book to Roger's attention.  The book was written long before the consolidation of modern New Age dogma and jargon, and long before modern claims of soul retrievals.  The retrieval practices the book reports are among the most compelling I have ever read and are the main reason why I do not dismiss this site's poorly verified retrieval reports outright.    

Howell Vincent, was a teacher of Applied Science, a Presbyterian minister, and a missionary to Thailand (then Siam) and pre-Communist China.  He and his family specialized in the retrievals of recent World War II fatalities.  His book is written in the shadow of the recent tragic deaths of his daughter Rea and her husband Herb.  This couple were on their honeymoon in New England when they suffered fatal wounds in a car crash and died slowly in a hospital.    

I will quote from Howell's account (p. 25) of an ADC that he experienced in the presence of  4 of his family members.  I will be quoting this passage in my Easter Sunday sermon on Jesus resurrection appearance in John 21:1-19.  Howell's account rivals Jesus Easter appearance by the Sea of Galilee in terms of its multiple simultaneous witnesses, its "physicality" (e. g. eating fish; offering an etheric calendula flower that is then pressed and preserved), and its power to comfort in times of crisis.  To help the reader, I note that Nellie is Howell's late first wife, Agnes is his 2nd wife, and Rea is his daughter by Nellie.  After Rea's accident Nellie appeared to her again in a comforting deathbed apparition.  Quoting Howell Vincent:

    ON AT LEAST 2 OCCASIONS THIS RADIANT MOTHER HAD
     COME TO REA IN VISIBLE, TANGIBLE FORM & TALKED WITH
     HER.  IN 1933, I WAS PRIVILEGED TO BE PRESENT AT ONE OF
     THESE HEAVENLY VISITS BY MOTHER NELLIE.  TOGETHER
    WITH REA, I TALKED WITH NELLIE, FULLY RECOGNIZING HER
     FACE AND FORM & VOICE.  I SAW HER PLACE HER HAND ON
     REA’S HEAD IN BLESSING, & I SAW HER GIVE REA A FLOWER,
     A CALENDULA, WHICH WE PRESSED AND KEPT.  AT THAT
     TIME 3 OTHER MEMBERS OF OUR FAMILY WERE PRESENT,
      INCLUDING REA’S 2ND MOTHER, AGNES, AND THEY ALL SAW
      NELLIE AND TALKED WITH HER, AS REA AND I DID.  WE
      WERE ALL WIDE AWAKE AND WALKED ABOUT THE ROOM
      WITH NELLIE.  IN HER HOUR OF DEVASTATING PAIN AND
      FRUSTRATION, REA RECALLED THOSE FORMER VISITS
      WITH THE SHINING METAMORPHOSIZED PRESENCE OF HER
      MOTHER NELLIE, AND THAT LOVING PRESENCE NOW CAME
      ONCE MORE TO ENFOLD HER WITH PEACE, DISSOLVING HER
      FEARS AND EASING HER PAIN.

Don

Hi,

That's amazing, to have a flower handed over by a non-physical being ! that's wonderful. Those people must have been energized by much belief and love to have been able to contribute their energy to help sustain the physical form of that flower!

Small note to any newbies though: Anyone doing retrievals and visitations to the afterlife has found verification, or they wouldn't be wasting their time.
One example was a group effort (while Berserk wasn't using this site so he doesn't know about it) about a year ago. We all found the same answer to a mysterious death by visiting the deceased in the Afterlife. Several of us gave the same physical description of him; no one gave a conflicting description; and that description was verified when someone found a UTube vide of the deceased from before he died. We all got the same information about the method of his passing.
The visitation was double blind and no one knew except a 'moderator' what others had found until later.
The problem of verification comes in how (and why) to report to others, not in the experience itself.

Sorry to interrupt this thread --it's wonderful and doesn't need that unfair worn out jab about others' verifications.  :)

Bets

Don-

How did the sermon go?  What were reactions from congregation?

Yes, Vincent's book presented the most compelling case for retrievals that I have ever read.  All the more so because that really wasn't the focus of the book.  It really was written about his daughter.

He would have written more about it but he was anxious to get the book published.  A real shame since his first hand knowledge about retrievals, along with explanations as to why we humans are essential in helping departed souls find the light, was invaluable.

He didn't say, but I doubt he used the imagination technique.  He was profoundly religious, and knew that retrieval work was highly spiritual in nature and not a parlor game.  He always approached it in a prayerful attitude.

His deceased daughter referred to retrievals as "gleaning."  What a marvelous term!

R

Don. What methods does he use for retrievals? Carl & Family

[Carl, I will answer your question in due time.  I'm very busy righr now.  But thought I'd share HV"s retrieval insights and experiences.]

RAE’S TRANSITION AFTER THE AUTO ACCIDENT:

“Rea in the Border Land was the center of the theatre.  She was dancing and bubbling with joy like an excited child, but was also consciously watching...and appraising her reactions to that marvelous environment. ..Mother Nellie and her mother and a large group of relatives and interested friends remained on the brilliantly lighted Headlands; they did not cross the border to meet Rea.  Only the procession of brides came on to her stage to bid her join their gliding dance into the joy and peace of the heavenly place…

We asked Nellie, “Why don’t you come and take hold of Nellie and help her start?”  Nellie shook her head; that was not allowed; no help could be given from her side.  Rea had to make her own crossing “in Light,” with such help that we through love and faith could give her from this side.

HOWELL’S FACILITATION OF RAE’S TRANSITION:

The chasm which Rea still had to cross in part resembled…the barrier of an inferiority complex that has to be attacked and overcome by the person himself.  When the person takes the initiative, the barrier is crossed, and thereupon, vanishes…The effort required of her can be compared to the act of will that a chick makes to pip the shell in its second birth…The love light that we were able through love and faith to draw down to her from the Father combed out all the shadows from her valley of shadows, but the chasm remained to be crossed,…though it was..filtered clean of all the blackness of shadows.

From our border of the Border Land, I called to Rea, “Love never faileth…Forgive me for holding you here in pain those last hours, but I could not let you go until every art of earth was tried to keep you with us.  Adieu, my lovely daughter, join in the ritual of those beautiful brides.  They are the Father, impersonated in these His children, for you, His child…Underneath are the everlasting arms.

REA’S TRANSITION DANCE:

She turned to us with a childish curtsy, smiled and waved, then turning to her mother Nellie on those gleaming Headlands, she leaned forward as though to take a step, and one of her brothers standing just behind her gave her a gentle loving push, and instantly she was gliding in the rhythm and formation of the bride’s ritual dance.  Over the valley now robbed of its shadows, a bride among brides, danced our beautiful Rae into Emmanuel’s Land, into the arms of her mother Nellie…This is possible for all of us since Jesus Christ opened this trail to all of us when He passed this way for us all.”

dON

No worries, Don. Take your time. This may interest you also. It's in four parts, and describes the lower and higher heavens.

"The Life Beyond The Veil"

by Rev. George Vale Owen(1860-1931)

Vicar of Orford, Lancashire, England

With an appreciation by
Lord Northcliffe

And an introduction by
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle M.D.,LL.D

Published NewYork 1921

http://www.spiritwritings.com/BeyondVeil1.pdf
http://www.spiritwritings.com/BeyondVeil2.pdf
http://www.spiritwritings.com/BeyondVeil3.pdf
http://www.spiritwritings.com/BeyondVeil4.pdf

Carl & Family






Berserk2 wrote on Apr 14^th, 2009 at 6:51pm:

[Carl, I will answer your question in due time.  I'm very busy righr now.  But thought I'd share HV"s retrieval insights and experiences.] RAE’S TRANSITION AFTER THE AUTO ACCIDENT: “Rea in the Border Land was the center of the theatre.  She was dancing and bubbling with joy like an excited child, but was also consciously watching...and appraising her reactions to that marvelous environment. ..Mother Nellie and her mother and a large group of relatives and interested friends remained on the brilliantly lighted Headlands; they did not cross the border to meet Rea.  Only the procession of brides came on to her stage to bid her join their gliding dance into the joy and peace of the heavenly place… We asked Nellie, “Why don’t you come and take hold of Nellie and help her start?”  Nellie shook her head; that was not allowed; no help could be given from her side.  Rea had to make her own crossing “in Light,” with such help that we through love and faith could give her from this side. HOWELL’S FACILITATION OF RAE’S TRANSITION: The chasm which Rea still had to cross in part resembled…the barrier of an inferiority complex that has to be attacked and overcome by the person himself.  When the person takes the initiative, the barrier is crossed, and thereupon, vanishes…The effort required of her can be compared to the act of will that a chick makes to pip the shell in its second birth…The love light that we were able through love and faith to draw down to her from the Father combed out all the shadows from her valley of shadows, but the chasm remained to be crossed,…though it was..filtered clean of all the blackness of shadows. From our border of the Border Land, I called to Rea, “Love never faileth…Forgive me for holding you here in pain those last hours, but I could not let you go until every art of earth was tried to keep you with us.  Adieu, my lovely daughter, join in the ritual of those beautiful brides.  They are the Father, impersonated in these His children, for you, His child…Underneath are the everlasting arms. REA’S TRANSITION DANCE: She turned to us with a childish curtsy, smiled and waved, then turning to her mother Nellie on those gleaming Headlands, she leaned forward as though to take a step, and one of her brothers standing just behind her gave her a gentle loving push, and instantly she was gliding in the rhythm and formation of the bride’s ritual dance.  Over the valley now robbed of its shadows, a bride among brides, danced our beautiful Rae into Emmanuel’s Land, into the arms of her mother Nellie…This is possible for all of us since Jesus Christ opened this trail to all of us when He passed this way for us all.” dON

I mean no disrespect, but I don't understand how this proves to be the truth. How do you know what is written in the book you mention is real? It could of been peoples imagining it all. How do you know? What makes you believe this to be true?

Thank you for answers.

smidee

Smidee,

For all I KNOW, Bruce Moen, Robert Monroe, and Howell Vincent are all lying or hallucinating.  But that is not what I BELIEVE.  I take for granted that they are telling the truth as they have experienced it and are therefore worth reading to expand our awareness of the afterlife.  It is unreasonable to dismiss new perspectives that challenge your preconceptions by the POSSIBILITY that their experiences MIGHT be deluded hallucinations.  

Who said anything about "proof" and "knowing?"  How do you "know" whether the Apollo moon landing is a lie and  the moon film was not faked in a New Mexico hangar?  Howell's book is brutally candid and his integrity is attested by a fellow Presbyterian minister who knows him personally.  The real issue is neither PROOF nor KNOWING, but which research and personal testimonies one finds PERSONALLY CONVINCING.  There is no way of avoiding the quest for reliable spiritual discernment based on the quality of our INTUITION.

Don

DISCARNATE LOVED ONES AT THE FUNERAL OF HERBERT AND AN ALREADY REVIVED REA

“Wonderful blankets of flowers covered the caskets, and the pulpit platform was banked with flowers.  The church was well filled with friends.  On the spirit side…a pavilion was seen stretching over and around the church, and 200-300 spirits were visible in attendance.  They were not interested in the funeral service…They were wholly interested in the resurrection body of Herbert, that it be completely strengthened…One shining spirit said, “We are not interested in these rites that concern the outward shells of life.  Does your poultry man give much thought to the shells when the chicks are out needing attention and filling the place with joyous new life?”  

But on Sept. 2 there were 2 different services going on, and some of us present were permitted to take part in those rites that produced results, though all others present were unaware.  A Great Advanced Spirit stood just behind Dr. Buker[the minister]  and above him.  This Spirit was of vast power and poise.  He stood motionless and serene.   His chest was of the Christ blue color; the rest of him was shining white.  We were not told his identity or rank.  In front of us, on our left side as we faced the pulpit, back of Herbert’s casket, was an extended platform on which [discarnate] Mother Nellie and her mother and others sat.  Nellie was holding Herbert in her arms.  Rea flitted in and out.

We observed that Herbert was powerless to move; the life force had not yet circulated in his spirit body.  We asked Nellie and other attendants, “Can’t you start the life force in him to give him mobility?”  They answered, “Vitality will come to Herbert very slowly on this spirit side and only as he is able to recognize his own powers and use them.  But help can be given from the earth side, because the earth human vibration is the cradle and feeder of the spirit body.”

THE RETRIEVAL OF HERBERT
Intuitively, it came to one of us, “I can start the Life Force, I am permitted to do it.”  Without any precedent or former knowledge of this technique, he knew what to do and did it.  He visualized the life currents in his own spirit body, seeing them in motion, flowing from his head to his feet.  Then through…a conscious summoning of the inductive force of life, he inducted these currents into Herbert by visualizing them as flowing in the same way through Herbert’s spirit body as they were flowing in his own body…Such visualization is not mere imagination; it is an act of creative faith.  He saw small particles of light becoming more and more active in Herbert’s spirit body.  Soon Herbert was able to rise and walk about the platform and join Rea, and together they thankfully rejoiced in the completed transmutation of his resurrection body.  Then they skipped right out of church and were heard shouting happily (“Lighted Passage,”  pages 111-113).”

Don  

Quote:

The real issue is neither PROOF nor KNOWING, but which research and personal testimonies one finds PERSONALLY CONVINCING.  There is no way of avoiding the quest for reliable spiritual discernment based on the quality of our INTUITION.

Don,

Is what you are saying that we should look at a lot of sources and do comparison to see if others say same thing? And if our intuition says it might be true, then maybe it is? I like these posts you are making here even if I don't understand it all.

Thank you for your answers.

smidee

Berserk2 wrote on Apr 18^th, 2009 at 4:53pm:

DISCARNATE LOVED ONES AT THE FUNERAL OF HERBERT AND AN ALREADY REVIVED REA “Wonderful blankets of flowers covered the caskets, and the pulpit platform was banked with flowers.  The church was well filled with friends.  On the spirit side…a pavilion was seen stretching over and around the church, and 200-300 spirits were visible in attendance.  They were not interested in the funeral service…They were wholly interested in the resurrection body of Herbert, that it be completely strengthened…One shining spirit said, “We are not interested in these rites that concern the outward shells of life.  Does your poultry man give much thought to the shells when the chicks are out needing attention and filling the place with joyous new life?”   But on Sept. 2 there were 2 different services going on, and some of us present were permitted to take part in those rites that produced results, though all others present were unaware.  A Great Advanced Spirit stood just behind Dr. Buker[the minister]  and above him.  This Spirit was of vast power and poise.  He stood motionless and serene.   His chest was of the Christ blue color; the rest of him was shining white.  We were not told his identity or rank.  In front of us, on our left side as we faced the pulpit, back of Herbert’s casket, was an extended platform on which [discarnate] Mother Nellie and her mother and others sat.  Nellie was holding Herbert in her arms.  Rea flitted in and out. We observed that Herbert was powerless to move; the life force had not yet circulated in his spirit body.  We asked Nellie and other attendants, “Can’t you start the life force in him to give him mobility?”  They answered, “Vitality will come to Herbert very slowly on this spirit side and only as he is able to recognize his own powers and use them.  But help can be given from the earth side, because the earth human vibration is the cradle and feeder of the spirit body.” THE RETRIEVAL OF HERBERT Intuitively, it came to one of us, “I can start the Life Force, I am permitted to do it.”  Without any precedent or former knowledge of this technique, he knew what to do and did it.  He visualized the life currents in his own spirit body, seeing them in motion, flowing from his head to his feet.  Then through…a conscious summoning of the inductive force of life, he inducted these currents into Herbert by visualizing them as flowing in the same way through Herbert’s spirit body as they were flowing in his own body…Such visualization is not mere imagination; it is an act of creative faith.  He saw small particles of light becoming more and more active in Herbert’s spirit body.  Soon Herbert was able to rise and walk about the platform and join Rea, and together they thankfully rejoiced in the completed transmutation of his resurrection body.  Then they skipped right out of church and were heard shouting happily (“Lighted Passage,”  pages 111-113).” Don

Don, I have read what you have just described in another book! That's where the dead relatives were at the funeral, here on Earth, waiting for or with the recently deceased!  I'm trying to remember what's the name of the book it came from. Thank's for that! Carl & Family.

"LIGHTED PASSAGE," pp. 208-209:

"Soon after the funeral Rae appeared in radiant form to her friend Eliza in Brookline {Massachusetts]..."Hello!  Rae, what happened that you should be killed like that?" she asked.  "Rea, smiling, replied, "I was in the right place at the right time."" 

"About...sunset on the day of the funeral, one of Rae's brothers was alone in a boat on the lake, idly paddling about reviewing the experience of the past few days.  Quietly and gently Rae appeared, first sitting on the gunnel of the boat; then without any commotion she took the seat opposite him..."How's this, Pal? You were so quiet and harmonious, I was able to borrow enough human substance from you to smile through.  I hope you don't mind.  I only required a few ounces and will return it all.  I cannot use it in my expanded life."

"You will observe, brother Pal, that even my vocabulary is expanded, partly due to what I have gleaned and partly because I am using terms I've found in your field of knowledge."  

[NOTE:I have found other sources for Rae's explanation of her source of words and concepts for astral communication.  Rae's description of her soul {see below) resembles Robert Monroe's kaleidascopic vision of the realm of his soul's origin in "Journeys Out of the Body."  RM does not equate this with his soul, though I suspect that he eventually came to interpret such experiences in this way.]

[Rae:] "I find my soul is a stream whose source is hidden.  I can see the brilliant stream, and it winds on into the silver distance, changing to gold and mixed with other colors I can't describe."

Don  

VISIONARY AND CLAIRAUDIENT COMMUNICATIONS FROM HERB, REA'S DECEASED GROOM: ON THE NEED FOR GODLY PRAYERS FROM THE INCARNATE AS AN AID TO RETRIEVALS ("Lighted Passage" 221-222):

"To join us in this work for which we are called is the greatest gift you can give us.  Your prayers and faith are our credentials with the lost.  As we approach these bewildered dead who know not which way to turn, we bid them look into your hearts for the credentials that verify our service to them.  The reason for this is that they cannot see us clearly; our atmosphere or environment of light is too bright for them.  Often they have more difficulty than living mortals have in seeing us understandlngly.  They are still of a slow, mundane vibration of life,..and so, they have no trouble in seeing you, and they carefully scrutinize your motives.  The love and good will for them that they see in your heart, as you lift them to the Father in prayer, assure them of our sincerity even though they cannot see us.  We lead them to you.  They look into your heart that is freed from all animosity by the love of God that shines there through your prayer.  You invite them to the Father.  Gladly they ascend to a place provided, and all their problems begin to melt away in the ever increasing light that is given, tempered to their vital quality and their need."  

Don

Don-

Vincent wrote about retrievals in the 1940s.

Do you know how far back in literature we can find discussions about retrievals?

Specifically physically alive humans helping the dead to find the light?

R

Hey,

I just had a thought! :D -- The Bible doesn't talk about retrievals because people back then weren't' ready for them'
SO
That shows we are Evolving! (Despite that some say we are devolving.)

Thanks, Rondele!
Yay!

Bets

I've done some research on this and can't find anything that gives a history of retrievals.

Only thing I can find roughly similar is the Catholic tradition of praying for souls in purgatory, or soul retrievals which involves retrieving a lost part of oneself.

But when it comes to a human guiding a deceased soul to a helper, can't find much of anything.

I'm not saying this practice just started in the 20th century, but Rev Vincent's book written in the 1940s is the earliest reference I could find.  Of course, I imagine someone must have clued Vincent into this, I doubt he stumbled on it all by himself.

Bruce or Don.....anyone have some history on this??

R

Roger,

Don 't forget that Swedenborg performed a few retrievals of "devils" (= evil discarnate humans), though he devotes little space to this in his writings.  And Bets' claim that the Bible makes no mention of retrievals is mistaken.  In 1 Peter 3:19-20 and 4:6, Peter celebrates preaching the Gospel to deceased "spirits in prison" (= Hell).  Presumably this proclamation  allows a chance to respond and hence be saved or retrieved.  And Paul grounds some of his theology on the Christian practice of proxy baptism for the unredeemed dead (1 Corinthians 15:28-29).  This practice is partly based on the new Jewish practice of praying for the sinful dead (2 Maccabees 12:41-46) and amounts to retrievals.  In the generation after the Book of Revelation, the possibility of retrievals from Hell through the efforts of discarnate Christians saints is stressed in two early Christian works--the Apocalypse of Peter 14 and Christian Sibylline Oracles II.  WRITTEN evidence for soul retrievals cannot be traced back earlier than New Testament Christianity!  

Don

Ohh--

They sure didn't teach us that in Sunday School! I'm glad to hear I was wrong on that.

I assume that before Christ, humans were not considered developed enough to deal with Spiritual Love being more appropriate than war, etc?

Bets

Don-

Let me try this angle- Vincent was a Presbyterian minister as you know.

Was the practice of retrievals (he called them "rescues") of the newly dead something that was done in that denomination or other denominations of the Church during the 20th Century?

In other words, would the clergy of his day have been familiar with what he was doing?  

Or would the clergy of today know about it?  

Is it taught or mentioned in the seminaries?

Or do you think Vincent, in this respect, a "rogue" minister?

R

Roger: "Or do you think Vincent, in this respect, a "rogue" minister?"
________________________________________________________
Yes, it is obvious why Vincent's book is generally unknown and why it quickly went out of print.  It is too occult for orthodox believers of the major Christian denominations and too Christian for occultists in the 1940s.  Early Christian retrievals are overlooked in our seminaries and the whole subjest of contact with the dead is generally viewed with suspicion in modern churches as a variation of channeling.      

I often allude to NDEs and ADCs in sermons, funerals, and memorial services.  Doing so was not initially safe for me.  First, I had to gain the trust of my congregations for my teaching and preaching on more conventional spiritual issues.  Now I find widespread appreciation for my blending of insights from such paranormal experiences with biblical teaching and effective prayer.  My 3-hour discussion of angelic visitations with a group of unchurched ladies was well appeciated.  I long for the time when New Age trail-blazers break free from their doctrinaire myopic perspectives and launch a truly multi-disciplinary approach to the afterlife that is self-critical, testable, and falsifiable.  

Right now, modern cynicism about the teachings of channeling, astral explorers, and uncritical "devotees of UFO abductions" is sadly warranted.  I pray this will change but doubt that a truly honest and open multi-disciplinary approach will be widely developed in my lifetime.  Every generation is appalled by the limited overviews of earlier generations.    

Don

So I'll ask you to venture a guess on this one-

Suppose we could go back in time and meet with Rev Vincent, and we were to ask him how he learned or heard about retrievals.

What do you think he would say?

Remember, we're talking about retrievals in the sense he did them- leading the newly dead to the light or to helpers.

He knew about the important role humans play in the retrieval process.  About how our vibrations were more in tune with the newly dead, thus enabling us to get their attention.

I am intrigued at how he first learned of this stuff.

R

Roger,

Yesterday I loaned my copy of "Lighted Passage" to Ina, our church organist--a mother whose daughter, Kathy, who died from complications from a bullet which came out sideways from her Dad's gun at a shooting range and lodged in her spine in the neck area.  The profoundly beautiful poetry an 11-year-old Kathy wrote her mother will be on display on a music stand in front of our altar in tomorrow's Mother's Day service.  I will be commenting on the meaning of this poetry before our church sings, "Precious Memories."  

As I recall, Howell Vincent identifies his British mentors at the beginning of his book.  When Ina returns the book, I will google the names and try to answer your question that way.

Don  

You're referencing Olive C.B. Pixley from England (altho I don't know if she's tied in to retrievals).  

It was more about her "technique of light" but who knows.

Btw I do a lot of recreational shooting as does my wife.  Pistols, rifles, and shotguns. Have done so for many years.  I've never heard of a bullet coming out of a gun sideways.

Only thing I can think of is if the barrel blew up (which is extremely rare) a fragment could have flew off in her direction.

In any case I hope you are able to post some of the poetry.  I'd love to read it.

R

ps-

I think I'm getting some clues on this!

After googling Olive C.B. Pixley, I find the phrase "rescue circles"!  Remember, Vincent refers to retrievals as rescues.

Then after googling spirit rescue circles, I find someone who apparently does them in your state!

http://www.experienceproject.com/stories/Do-Spirit-Rescue-Work/293919

Maybe this is a clue.  

I'll keep checking.

I have always wondered why this little book came my way......

R

Don-

Gets better and better!  Getting closer to the history of retrievals.  Below is from

http://www.spiritwritings.com/fodorr.html

RESCUE CIRCLES of spiritualists, formed for the purpose of "waking up" the dead and freeing them from their earthbound state, are based on the idea that earthbound spirits are too gross to be reached by the influence of higher spirits from the other side. They stand closer to the material plane than to the spiritual. In many cases they do not realize that they are dead at all and live in a state of bewilderment. If they are enlightened on their true condition and prayers are offered for them they will progress to a higher existence.

The beginning of rescue circles may be traced to the Shaker communities of America. The appearance of a tribe of Indian controls aroused the impression that the Shakers were to teach and proselytize them. The first such circles were held by the wife of Col. Danskin of Baltimore and other ladies. The best work was performed by a circle in Buffalo between 1875 and 1900 and by Dr. Carl Wickland and his wife. The medium in the first case was Marcia M. Swain and Leander Fischer, a professor of music in Buffalo. The circle consisted of Daniel E. Bailey and his wife, the mother of the professor and Mrs. Aline M. Eggleston, the stenographer. The identity of the spirit brought to be "waked up" was often verified but as the search after such proofs entailed considerable labor and time it was, after a while, given up. The work of the circle is described in D. E. Bailey's Thoughts from the Inner Life, Boston, 1886. Twelve gripping records of these rescue seances were published in Admiral Moore's Glimpses of the Next State.

Similar mission work was carried on by E. C. Randall, also in Buffalo. The medium was Mrs. Emilie S. French. Randall's Frontiers of the After Life, New York, 1922, describes the results. Dr. Wickland's book, Thirty Years Among the Dead, Los Angeles, 1924, contains hundreds of interesting records. Later he also produced Gateway of Understanding. The work of the Tozer rescue circle in Melbourne is described in Conan Doyle's Wanderings of a Spiritualist. In California Charlotte Dresser's circle encountered similar earthbound spirits described in Spirit World and Spirit Life and Life Here and Hereafter. More recent works include Valley of the Shadow, 1994, by Peter F. Baker and Sixty Years a Spiritualist, 1995, by Alan House.

R

Thank you, Rondele !

Bets